


Wet Earth

by Probs_not_perfect



Category: Lego Elves: Secrets of Elvendale (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-22
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-07-01 03:03:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15765288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Probs_not_perfect/pseuds/Probs_not_perfect
Summary: Emily comes back to Elvendale and is immediately thrust into a new dilemma. However, this time the issue is with Farran, and he asks her a big question about sexuality that she does her very best to answer. Azari wants to help Farran out, and Emily is dragged along for the ride. Who knows? Maybe she'll learn something about herself along the way.(Farran/Tidus and Emily/Azari. This fandom needs more love.)





	1. Confession

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a minute since I've written anything but I'm happy to return and I hope I've improved and not gotten worse. I typically only post on fanfiction dot net but I don't think there is even a spot for this fandom over there. It's small, but I still love it and hope the show gets a second season. If anyone's reading this, enjoy!

As much as Emily loved her sister, she couldn’t deny that it was nice to have some time away from her. But she felt that was typical for sisters. Maybe just siblings in general. Sophie was spending the night at a friend’s house and would likely be awake until the sun rises. Emily hoped her sister wouldn’t ask what she did during her absence. The young girl tended to get a bit angry when her older sister would go to Elvendale without her.

_Oh well. She’ll get over it._

It’ll be nice to see her friends without having to keep an eye on her mischievous mini-me. And, something she hated to admit, she wouldn’t have to fight for her friend’s attention. It wasn’t a big deal or anything. Sophie just naturally peaked their interest. And truth be told, it made her happy to see Sophie getting along with them. It was like bringing two halves of her family together.

Emily slipped through the portal and into the bright sunny forest of Elvendale. She took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh scent in the air. It somehow seemed different from the woodland air on Earth. She’d never stopped to question if it was even still oxygen she was breathing. Although she was more familiar with magic than most humans, it was still somewhat new to her. Magic was a fact of life for the elves, so they didn’t seem to know how to explain it very well. Maybe it was better that way. Every time she came back, she saw something new that amazed her.

“You’re back!”

Emily was shaken from her thoughts by a familiar voice and the sound of rustling leaves. She barely had time to turn her head before she was engulfed in massive hug.

“Hi Azari.”

Just when she thought she’d run out of air, Azari let her go. Despite being breathless, Emily still managed a smile to mirror her fiery friend’s. She giggled as Azari glanced all around, obviously searching for Sophie.

“It’s just me this time. Sophie’s with a friend.”

“Oh! That’s cool. Now you won’t have to follow anyone around and nag them!”

Emily crossed her arms. “What….I don’t do that.”

Azari just smirked. “But really, it’s good to see you. Come on! Let’s go find everybody else.”

The pair walked on towards the newly rebuilt treehouse, talking and laughing along the way. Emily loved the feeling of escape she got from coming here. The real world isn’t always so bright and happy. Then again, things can get bad here too sometimes. Emily tried not to think about that. It was over and Sophie was ok. If she really did nag, maybe it was for a good reason. That was the first time Sophie had come here and look what happened.

“Hello? Did you hear me?”

Emily was snapped out her train of thought by Azari once again. She was glad for it. She’s here to have fun and visit her friends. Not think about stressful past situations that have already been resolved.

“Sorry. What did you say?”

Azari pulled back a strand of Emily’s hair and peeked in her ear. “These round ears must get blocked up pretty easily.”

Emily laughed, shooing her friend’s hand away. The treehouse stood in front of them. It was pretty quiet, which was unusual. Azari quickly explained.

“I think Farran is the only one here right now. Aira dragged Naida out to test her latest invention. Judging by the many explosions I’ve heard, it’s going great!”

Emily looked concerned.

“You were supposed to laugh at that.”

“So you were kidding?”

“Not really. But Aira says you can’t get to perfection without combustion, or something like that. I don’t know.”

With a shrug, Azari entered the treehouse. Emily quietly reminded herself that magic explosions are much safer than explosions on earth, and followed her friend. Azari led her info Farran’s room where they found him tending to some kind of large vine. The fire elf snuck up behind him and slapped her hands onto his shoulders.

“Guess who’s back!”

Farran let out a tiny scream and grabbed his vine to steady himself. Unfortunately, the vine had slithered around most of the items on his desk. Everything came toppling to the floor and Emily bit back a laugh. After regaining his composure, the earth elf turned to face Azari with his hands on his hips.

“Look what you made me do! I had everything organized!”

Azari didn’t hide her laughter. “Now you can organize it all over again!”

Farran huffed and crouched down to pick up his belongings. Azari and Emily stopped laughing and exchanged glances. It wasn’t like Farran to be so serious and irritable. Emily recalled how she described him to Sophie when she told her stories about Elvendale. _A loveable goofball._ And loveable goofballs don’t typically pout on the floor and slam things back onto their desks. Both girls quickly joined him on the ground and started picking up.

Azari rubbed her arm uncomfortably. “Gee, sorry Farran. I shouldn’t have scared you I guess.”

It was so unnatural to see her like that. Azari was such a fun-loving elf, and she could make everyone else have fun too. Emily loved that about her. Farran must have felt it too, as he softened immediately.

“Oh, it’s alright, Azari. You didn’t mean any harm. I’ve just been in a marshy mood lately.”

It was then that he finally noticed the human in the room. “Oh! Hi Emily! When did you get back?”

She smiled, picking up the last of the items. “Just a moment ago.”

After the mess was cleaned up and Farran reorganized his desk, the trio relocated to the dining area to enjoy some sweet treats. Both girls noticed the green-eyed elf was still not quite himself, and with a single look, they made a pact to get to the bottom of it.

Azari shoved an entire cupcake into her mouth and proceeded to talk. “So what’s got you down in the swamps?”

Farran sighed. “It’s nothing. Just a weird problem I’ve been having.”

Emily wiped frosting off her lips. “Do you want to talk about it?”

The male elf scratched the back of his head, looking as though his mind was spinning around in circles. Azari finally finished chewing and playfully flicked a little ember at him.

“Come on Farran, if anyone can help you, its Emily.”

Emily felt put on the spot by that statement, but smiled brightly anyway. The green-eyed elf relented.

“Well, I guess I do have a question for you.”

Emily ignored Azari lightly kicking her foot under the table and nodded. Farran took a deep breath, and it was once again weird to see him looking so serious.

“So, in the human world, is it normal for guys to like other guys instead of girls?”

_Oh my god oh my god oh my god be cool don’t make a face just be casual oh my god_

Emily ignored all the sirens going off in her mind that told her she really wasn’t qualified to answer this question and did her best to keep a friendly expression. She didn’t doubt that she might have looked like she was having a stroke.

“It’s normal. Well, not _totally_ normal. I mean, it’s not _abnormal_. It’s like….most people like the opposite gender, some like the same, and some like both. It’s not the most common, but it’s not uncommon. Does that make sense? Sorry if that confused you.”

Farran let out a sigh of relief. He was just happy the answer hadn’t been a flat no. “I think I get it. That makes me feel a little better. I thought there might have been something wrong with me.”

Azari seemed totally oblivious to the fact that Farran just confessed he was interested in guys and used this new information to ask Emily a question.

“So what do _you_ like?”

Emily pretended like she wasn’t running an extreme fever after that question and returned her focus to the still frowning earth elf.

“Is that all, Farran?”

The misdirect worked, as the fiery haired girl next to her chimed in.

“Oh yeah, does that mean you like someone?”

With a dramatic groan, the earth elf slammed his head face down onto the table. This elicited more laughter from the girls. Azari poked the boy on the back of his head, causing him to swat at her.

“Just tell us who, Farran. You’ll feel better!”

“Azari’s right. We won’t tell anyone else if you don’t want us too.”

He groaned again and lifted up his head, resting it on his arms. Emily gave him her best smile for about the fifteenth time today and Azari continued lightly poking him. Swatting her away for a final time, he sighed and gave in to the persistent girls. After all, they were his friends. He could tell them anything.

“You won’t tell anyone else?”

Both girls offered their pinkies in a silent promise. Sophie had brought pinky promises to Elvendale and it caught on quick. After locking pinkies with both girls, he finally let the name slip past his lips.

“It’s Tidus.”

The mopey earth elf flinched as though he expected an onslaught of gasps or exclamations of disbelief. There were none to be found. Emily had put it together in her head while he had been groaning into the table. After all, there weren’t too many other male elves around aside from Cronan and Tidus, the former of which was back together with Rosalyn. And she couldn’t deny it; Tidus was a pretty good-looking guy, even by earth standards.

Azari practically echoed her thoughts out loud. “I could see that. He’s pretty dreamy.”

Farran sighed. “I know. And I’m pretty dopey.”

Azari chuckled at that, and Emily nudged her under the table. Laughter was definitely _not_ the response the lovesick boy needed right now. Although she couldn’t say she was an expert on this kind of stuff, she tried to apply what knowledge she did have. Embarrassingly enough, most of her insight came from teen movies that usually didn’t actually apply to real life.

Shaking off her doubts, Emily placed a hand on the earth elf’s shoulder. “You’re not dopey, Farran. I think you are a super smart, super cool, and super funny guy.”

Azari nodded enthusiastically. “Totally! Especially the super funny part! Remember last week when you accidentally spilled one of Naida’s potions on yourself and it turned your skin purple? Or when you fell off the back of my chariot? Or earlier today when you knocked over all your stuff!” The dark-skinned elf wiped a tear from her eye. “Hilarious.”

Farran crumpled back onto the table. “Oh great! I’m such a funny klutzy guy whose talents include embarrassing himself and being easily startled.”

This time Emily landed a light punch to the fire elf’s arm. This only made Azari giggle again, but she straightened out when she saw Emily’s expression. The human mouthed _“not helping”_ and patted the wilted boy on the back. Azari followed suit, although her pats were more like strong slaps.

“Cheer up big guy, we’re gonna help you out.”

Emily violently shook her head no. She barely knew how to talk someone through this stuff. Getting anymore involved was _way_ out of her league. She’d rather take on another shadow monster. If only she could have voiced that to Azari, but it was no use. She ignored Emily’s wild gesturing and continued.

“Me and Em will totally help in any way we can. It wouldn’t surprise me if Tidus liked you back!”

The green-eyed elf looked skeptical. “Are you just saying that?”

Running a hand through her fiery hair, Azari continued with a confidence that scared Emily. “Nah, I mean it! You guys are pretty good friends already, and he’s never tried to smooch me or any of the other girls. And even if he did, Emily said you can like both!”

Fidgeting intensely, Emily tried to regain control of the conversation. “I did say that, but I think it’s best not to assume anything. We can’t know for sure, and I also said it’s more common that-“

Azari interrupted. “Maybe on _earth_ it’s more common, but I think maybe us elves are meant to like both. I mean, I thought Cronan was cute when he first showed up, but I also think you’re pretty cute too Em.”

This statement effectively obliterated Emily’s ability to speak for the next few minutes.

Farran however, was starting to perk up. “So you really think there’s a chance he feels the same? I don’t want to muddy up our whole friendship if it freaks him out or something.”

“Pshh, you’re overthinking it. I say we head on over to his dragon school today and just see for ourselves.”

The only human (or sane individual) in the room played with her hair as she tried to wrap her head around this. Socializing in Elvendale hadn’t been too much different from earth, but it wasn’t exactly the same. The elves were much kinder than most humans for starters. And maybe Azari had been right; it was possible that they were inherently open to relationships with anyone, regardless of gender. Even if this weren’t the case, she had a hard time picturing Tidus reacting negatively to the situation. They were all so supportive to each other.

Still, she didn’t want to encourage it too much. “I don’t know guys. Maybe you should think about it for a while.”

The ebony skinned girl next to her must have heard that sentence a little differently because she responded with:

“Great idea Emily! We’ll plan a welcome back party for you and invite Tidus! That will give Farran some time to plan what he’s gonna say.” She threw a wink at the boy who actually seemed a bit more confident. Emily felt the opposite.

_Maybe I should have stayed at home._


	2. Confidence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Party preparations and supportive friends.

Aira and Naida finally made an appearance not long after Azari concocted this plan of throwing a party, both of them looking worse for wear. Whatever Aira’s new invention was, it was messy. Emily looked shocked, but Aira cheerily informed her that things always went this way during the initial testing phase. Naida nodded in agreement, although her expression suggested she would have added an “unfortunately” to the beginning of that sentence. The girls left to change and when they returned the fire elf wasted no time in telling them about the party. She kept her promise and didn’t reveal their true intentions for the get together. They didn’t need any persuasion anyway.

“It’s been forever since we had a party!” Aira clapped and jumped for joy.

Naida finally smiled. “I love parties! Are we going to have it here at the treehouse?”

Azari shrugged. Aira gasped. “You mean you haven’t planned anything?!”

“What’s the big deal? Parties are supposed to be spontaneous.”

Naida gestured to Emily. “She deserves more than a hastily thrown together party for her return to Elvendale!”

Before Emily could get a single word in and explain she didn’t really mind, the two elf girls dragged Azari away and out of the kitchen, yelling about snacks and decorations. She couldn’t help but laugh. It was nice to see everyone so excited. She kind of felt bad about throwing a party without Sophie here, but she was certain on her next visit the elves would insist on throwing the young girl a party of her own. And anyways, this party wasn’t really for her. The human girl turned to Farran, who still sat idly at the table. It was clear from his expression that he was still feeling somewhat conflicted. She felt for him. Emily was no stranger to confusing emotions. She decided leaving him to stew in his own thoughts wasn’t being a good friend.

“They’ll probably be busy for a little while. Want to go for a walk?”

Farran started a bit, almost having forgotten she was still in the room. He returned her smile and nodded appreciatively. The pair exited the treehouse and decided to walk down by the water. They made light conversation, asking each other what had been going on since Emily’s last visit. The elves were always interested to hear about life on earth, though none of them expressed much interest in ever going there themselves. Emily supposed she wouldn’t pick a world without magic if she had the choice either. After that, they walked in a comfortable silence and eventually stopped and sat on the shore to look at some of the colorful fish swimming by. Emily spotted a creature that looked a lot like a seahorse, and made a mental note to remember it. Her sister loved seahorses.

“Sophie will get so jealous when I tell her about the party.”

Farran chuckled. “She won’t be mad, will she?”

“Not as long as we throw her an even bigger party next time.”

Leaning back on his hands, Farran looked up at the sky. Its deep blue color reminded him of his current predicament. “You really think this is a good idea?”

Emily bit her tongue. She was hoping to avoid this subject. Nevertheless, she had to be supportive of her friend.

“It doesn’t matter what I think. It’s about how you feel. If you really want to tell him, then you should.”

He sighed, looking back down to the ground where his hand fiddled with the grass. “I just can’t picture him liking me back.”

Emily turned away from the water, giving him her full attention. “Why?”

“I don’t know. I just don’t think I’m super desirable. You remember when we all first met Cronan? Everyone was all over him. Even I could tell he was smooth. No ones ever felt that way about me. I’m just not the type, you know? I’m the goofy one, not the charismatic one.”

This made Emily feel a little guilty. Only moments earlier she had recalled her description of Farran in her stories and it totally portrayed him the way he was describing himself now. But it wasn’t true. Or rather, it wasn’t the full truth. There was so much more to him than that. This conversation she was having with him now proved it. Someone who was only comic relief wouldn’t have this kind of internal struggle.

Emily reached out and grabbed his hands, forcing him to look up at her. She knew he was vulnerable, and she had to phrase whatever she was going to say very carefully.

“Listen, Farran. Being goofy isn’t a bad thing. You make other people laugh, and you’re never afraid to make mistakes or just say how you’re feeling. It’s a good trait to have. But it’s not your only one. You’re deeper than that. You’re brave, and you never back down, especially if your friends are involved. You’re always eager to lend a hand and you’re open to learning new things. Regardless if someone likes you back or not, I don’t want you to have such a low self-image. You’re a great guy.”

The earth elf was completely flabbergasted by the sudden onslaught of compliments from his human friend. As soon as the words sunk in, he pulled her into a hug. Emily laughed and hugged back, happy to see her words had made an impact. When they parted, she saw a new confidence in his eyes.

“Thank you, Emily. That was exactly what I needed.” He got to his feet, and pumped a fist in the air, looking like some sort of triumphant warrior. “I will no longer be afraid to be honest about the way I feel. I am Farran, the bravest elf in Elvendale!” He mimicked a trumpet and Emily cheered. The pair broke into giggles and decided to head back to the treehouse. Emily was proud of herself for not screwing up and Farran hummed a tune that she could almost bet was a love song.

They were halfway to the treehouse when a shout from across the water got their attention.

“Hey guys!”

Emily looked for the source of the voice, barely making out a shape on the other side of the bay. She squinted at the waving form. Blue hair and dark skin. _Oh boy._ “Tidus?”

“Stay right there! I’ll be over in a sec!” With that, they watched as he dove into the water. Emily watched for him to resurface, but he didn’t for a moment. She was about to say something when he remerged from the water right in front of them. It took her by surprise, and Farran looked pretty shaken too. Although if Emily had to guess, it was more likely due to the fact that Tidus was in his bathing suit.

As he reached the shore, Emily decided she’d give Farran a moment to collect himself and distract the other elf from his obvious gaping. “You can breathe under water?”

Tidus shook out the water from his hair. “Not quite. As a water elf, I can dive below the surface and manipulate the currents to quickly move myself across a body of water. Naida can do it too I think.”

As Tidus explained, the earth elf was in awe at the sight before him. Tidus’s tanned skin glistened in the sun, water droplets still dripping down his toned chest. Farran suddenly felt his recent burst of confidence slowly slipping away. He tried to focus on Emily’s words and reminded himself that Tidus was his friend just like any of the others.

“So, when did you get back, Emily?”

“A while ago. I-“

Farran interrupted with a little more enthusiasm then he’d meant to. “We’re throwing her a welcome back party!”

Luckily, Tidus seemed just as excited. “Really? Sweet! It’s been awhile since we’ve had a party around here.”

“You’ll be able to come, right?” Farran scratched the back of his neck. “You’re not too busy with the dragon school?”

“Nah, they’re on a break right now. I’ve got tons of free time. Plus, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity for free food. Especially some of your famous nut bread!”

Scratching his arm now instead, Farran forced a chuckle. “I actually hadn’t planned on making any.”

“Aw, you have too! Ever had any of his nut bread, Emily?”

Emily nodded. “It is pretty good.”

Tidus gestured at Emily as if to say _see?_

Farran relented. “I guess I could whip some up real quick.”

The bronze skinned elf put his hands on his hips in victory. “Now we’re talking. See you guys later. I came out here to do some _real_ swimming. Using magic won’t help me stay in shape.” And with that, he dove back into the water and swam out of sight. Farran watched him swim away with a silly grin, and even Emily had to admit it was a pretty good view.

Suddenly, the earth elf grabbed her hand and quickly started dashing back towards the treehouse. “Come on, Emily! I’ve got to make some nut bread and do some pushups before the party!”

\-------

By the time they had returned to the treehouse, there were already decorations in place. Balloons, streamers, and a banner that said “Welcome Back” in bright bubble letters. Emily couldn’t help but smile at the sight. The party may have had secret intentions, but her friends still put in a lot of effort for her sake. Farran had rushed past her into the kitchen as soon as they’d gotten back, and she heard him frantically pulling ingredients out of the pantry all the way down the hall. Rolling her eyes (but still smiling) she intended to look for Azari and inform her of the new developments with Farran’s confidence, but was ambushed by Aira and Naida who were still in the process of setting up the party.

“How should we have her pose?” The air elf nibbled at the end of her purple hair.

Naida scratched her chin. “Something regal _._ Maybe have her hold out one arm like she’s waving.”

Aira grabbed Emily’s arm and forcefully moved it. “Hey! What are you-“

“Like this?”

“No, I said _regal._ She should wave like a queen waves to her subjects.”

Aira adjusted her arm again. “Better?”

“Perfect. Emily, hold that pose.”

The pair of elves stepped back a bit and stood facing each other. Emily did as she was told, but couldn’t silence her curiosity. “Why do I have to stand like this?”

Naida beamed at her. “I’m so glad you asked! Aira and I decided that we wanted your party to have something extra special.”

The wind elf nodded. “It _should_ have been a surprise party, but you already know. We had to think bigger.”

“So, we decided to make you an ice sculpture for your party!” Clearly proud of their idea, Naida flipped her hair and the girls smiled at each other.

Confused, Emily tried to recall if Naida had ever been able to summon ice. “How are you going to do that?”

Aira clapped her hands together. “Well, we figured if Naida uses her magic she can use the water in this bucket and make a rough shape of what we want, and then I can use my wind magic to add detail and freeze the water into ice, locking our sculpture in place!”

The human had no response to that and instead just held her pose as the two elf girls got to work. Naida summoned the water out of the large bucket and started to shape it into something that vaguely resembled a person. She signaled for Aira to join in and the wind elf began attempting to manipulate the water as well. Emily watched it slowly come together, remembering that this was the same world where a bird could carve your image perfectly into a tree. Perhaps their idea wasn’t so farfetched.

As the mass of water began to resemble Emily more and more, all three of them noticed it wasn’t showing any sign of freezing. Aira licked her lips, deciding it was time to kick things up a notch. She increased her power output and hoped that she’d be able to control the temperature of the air. Naida struggled to hold up the water as the pressure of the gusts increased. Emily closed her eyes, already knowing what would happen next.

Her hunch was proved right when Naida lost control and Aira’s wind sent the mass of water splattering all over the room, soaking the three girls and most of the decorations. The two elves, who were closest to the tidal wave, had been knocked off their feet. Emily wrung some of the water out of her hair and quickly approached her friends to see if they were alright. Both stared up at the ceiling wearing matching expressions of disappointment. Emily would have laughed if she wasn’t drenched and shivering.

“Naida?”

“Yes, Aira?”

“Want to pretend that didn’t happen?”

“Yes.”

\-------

Farran was in room, switching between push ups and sit ups. Seeing Tidus without a shirt had not only given him heat stroke, it had also motivated him to get more in shape. Of course, Tidus’s good looks and fit body weren’t the only things Farran liked about him. The earth elf admired Tidus’s drive to teach the dragons and take care of them. Something about seeing him care so much for the creatures, big and small, made him feel warm and fuzzy inside. And while it was true that Farran could often make people laugh (sometimes unintentionally), there was no doubt that Tidus’s laugh was much more rewarding. It also didn’t hurt that he seemed very appreciative of his nut bread.

He was thinking about where he could insert a branch in his room to do pull ups on when Azari let herself in. He’d normally ask her to knock, but he was grateful for his fiery friend. She and Emily were the reasons why he even had the confidence to be doing any of this.

“Sup, Farran?”

He wiped sweat from his forehead. “Just doing a little pre-party workout.” A thought occurred to him. “Were you helping the girls set up?”

“Nah, they were too busy picking out color schemes and tablecloths to notice that I slipped away. I took a pre-party nap.” She leaned against the wall, looking well rested. “Trying to bulk up?”

“Just trying to stay in shape.”

“Any particular reason?”

“Let’s just say I saw something today that motivated me.”

“Mind if I join you?”

Farran was genuinely shocked. “Really?”

The fire elf cracked her knuckles. “Let’s just say there’s someone that motivates me too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did my best to keep everyone in character. Tidus is kind of hard since he's only in like two episodes. Thank you for reading! Next chapter coming soon :)


	3. Party Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The party starts and everyone is having a blast. Farran struggles to find the right words, while others struggle to keep their mouths shut.

Despite the water damage, the treehouse’s interior was looking party ready just as the sun was beginning to set. Although most of the people attending the party already lived there, the other guests would be arriving soon. Aira and Naida were putting on the finishing touches and watching with curiosity as Farran carefully plated and organized the food. He seemed to have made a large quantity of nut bread which he displayed as the centerpiece. Emily helped him set out plates and utensils. Aira practically shoved her aside.

“What are you doing, Emily? This party is for you! You don’t need to help set up.”

The human girl shrugged. “I don’t mind. I’d rather help than just sit here and watch.”

Naida hung a recently dried streamer and turned to join the conversation. “That’s sweet, Em. I wish someone else we know was so eager to pitch in.”

She’d obviously been referring to Azari. Emily looked to the kitchen where she could hear the fire elf rummaging around. A grin spread across her face when she realized the fire elf was looking for her favorite flame sprinkles. She loved to shower anything she ate with them, especially on occasions like this.

She decided to come to Azari’s defense. “The party was her idea. Doesn’t that count for something?”

Naida sighed. “I suppose so.” She scanned the room for any imperfections. Nothing. “I think we’re all set!”

“Thank goodness! I need to spruce up before the guests arrive.” Aira hurried out of the room. Naida followed after, yelling something about not hogging the magic mirror. Guilt trickled back into Emily’s mind as she surveyed the room herself. Sophie would have loved to be here. They were _really_ going to have to pull out all the stops for their next party. Thankfully, Emily at least had a good rationale for this situation. She watched as Farran circled the food table as if he was worried it would walk away.

She laughed, and he did too, albeit nervously. “Just trying to make sure everything looks good.”

“It’s perfect, Farran. And I don’t think Tidus will care much about what the food looks like as long as he gets to eat it.”

He rubbed his arm. “You’re probably right. I’m overthinking everything again.”

He was clearly nervous, and Emily didn’t think any amount of encouragement could change that. Confessing feelings wasn’t something she’d ever done herself, but the thought was definitely nerve wracking. Suddenly, she began to wonder if the party had somehow pressured him to make this decision.

“Farran, you don’t _have_ to do or say anything tonight if you’re not ready.”

“I know. It’s been on my mind for a while. If I’m not ready now then I’ll never be.”

Smiling, she approached him to rest a hand on his shoulder again. “See? Courageous. I don’t know where you ever got any self-doubt.”

He blushed a bit. The earth elf wasn’t used to so much praise. “You’re a true friend, Emily.”

Sparks burst into the room from the kitchen. “Guess who found her favorite sprinkles?!”

Emily burst into laughter. This was going to be a fun night.

\-------

The sun dipped beneath the horizon as the guests arrived and the party was in full swing. Azari was on her third cupcake and had dragged the rest of the girls out to the dance floor. The goblins had their own band and since you couldn’t really sing along, your only option was dancing. Emily watched the three elf girls shamelessly flailing themselves around from the sidelines. She knew Azari would force her to join in eventually, but right now she was catching up with Rosalyn and Cronan. Across the room, she spotted Farran and Tidus. If she could have one wish tonight, it would be that everything works out for them.

The earth elf had been chatting with Tidus all night, trying to find the right time to say what he wanted to say. The issue was he wasn’t exactly sure what that was. I like you? Like more than a friend? Do you feel the same? Please don’t freak out? He’d never been so nervous about a conversation before.

Tidus was currently enjoying the nut bread he’d spent half the evening working on. Every “mmm” and other noise of approval just seemed to add to Farran’s nerves.

“Ok, that’s it. You have to give me the recipe for this.”

He laughed, only slightly uncomfortable. “I can’t! It’s a Leafshade family secret.”

“Alright then. I’ll just need you to make me enough so I can have it every day.”

“It’s not _that_ good.”

The dark skinned elf gasped dramatically. “How dare you. Take it back.”

“Sorry, sorry. Maybe I should just come live with you. I could whip some up for every meal.”

“Ha, the girls wouldn’t let me steal you away. They’d hunt me down.”

The earth elf watched as Tidus finished another piece. He got distracted momentarily watching him lick his lips, but quickly regained focus and reached across the snack table for a drink. He was pretty sure Naida had made the punch, and he secretly hoped that somehow she’d accidentally mixed this particular cup into a love potion.

“Here, to wash it down.”

“Thanks.” He took a swig and turned towards the dance floor. The three elf girls and a few goblins looked like a rainbow mosh pit. He pointed a thumb in their direction. “No dancing for you?”

Farran shrugged. “I’m probably not too good. Can’t say I’m the best with rhythm.” He grabbed a drink of his own and sipped absently. “What about you?”

“Eh, I’m probably not great either. I move better in the water.”

“I noticed.” He hadn’t meant to let that slip, his green eyes growing wide.

The water elf didn’t seem to notice. “I was definitely showing off for you guys earlier. Aside from raising and training dragons, swimming is probably my favorite hobby.”

Farran tried to push images of a dripping wet Tidus out of his head. “Unfortunately, being an earth elf hasn’t made me super smooth on land.”

Tidus laughed at that. He relished the sound. “I’ve seen that firsthand. Remember when you knocked over all those books at the dragon school?”

Embarrassed from the memory, the earth elf brought a hand up to his face in shame. “It took forever to restack and organize those.”

Realizing his laughter was actually embarrassing the earth elf all over again, Tidus composed himself. “I probably would have been at least a little mad if it had been anyone else. But you were so angry with yourself and kept apologizing.”

Seeing Farran still looking humiliated, the water elf struggled to find the right words. “Not that I thought it was funny or anything. It was actually kind of cute.”

A jolt of lighting ricocheted through Farran’s body at that four letter word. He blinked, and when he opened his eyes again he tried to look like he hadn’t been so obviously shaken by the statement. It only took a second for him to see that he’d spilled punch all over his own tunic. _Will the self embarrassment never end?_

“Swamp water! I’ll be right back.” Hanging his head in shame, the earth elf stalked away to change. Still hovering by the snack table, Tidus regretted bringing up the story. He was having a nice time talking to Farran. They don’t get to hang out much one on one. He decided he’d wait for him to return and…keep an eye on the nut bread.

Out on the dance floor, the three elf girls had danced themselves silly. They stood out of breath and slumped together, slightly swaying to the slow song the goblins played. Azari kept stealing glances at Emily, still locked in a conversation with the royal couple.

Still panting, she declared, “As soon as I catch my breath, I’m forcing Em to dance with us.”

Aira agreed. “I’ll back you up. This is her party after all.”

“She should have a spotlight dance!” Naida chimed in.

“Omg! That would be the perfect welcome back party finisher! And I just so happen to have the best shiny and bright spotlight by Aira handy for the occasion.”

The fire elf scoffed. “You guys are so extra. This party isn’t _really_ about Emily anyway.”

She realized too late her mistake. Confusion had already begun to set in on the other girls faces.

“What do you mean?”

“Well…” Azari was a terrible liar. She didn’t even like to try. It left a bad taste in her mouth. “We said it was for Emily, but it’s really for Farran.”

You could see the gears in Aira’s head turning. “It’s not his birthday. Half-birthday? No. Anniversary of something? Does he have his own holiday?”

The fire elf squirmed, talking quickly so that maybe they wouldn’t hear. “Well Farran was super sad because he has a crush on someone so we threw this party so that he could have a reason to talk to them and we told you it was a welcome back party for Emily because he didn’t want anyone else to know who it was.” She finished with a grin. Maybe they’d be too tired from dancing to ask anything else.

“ _What?”_ Their simultaneous response shattered that idea.

Naida seemed offended. “Why did he trust you two and not us?”

Aira gasped. “It must be one of us! Or maybe Rosalyn. He did seem to be her biggest fan when we first met her.”

They both looked at her expectantly. She didn’t want to say it, but she felt backed into a corner. Farran would understand, right? He’d probably already told the water elf anyway.

“It’s Tidus.”

“ _Tidus?”_ Once again, they answered in unison.

“Yep. Uh, I’m gonna go talk to Emily now. Bye!” The fire elf nearly trampled a few goblins as she fled from that conversation. The two girls hardly noticed. They were too excited.

“I think that’s sooooo sweet! Throwing a party just to get his attention!” Aira clasped her hands together. “So romantic.”

“I know! I wish somebody would do that for me.”

“Me too! Maybe some day our princes will come.”

Naida turned her attention to Tidus. He still stood alone by the food ad beverages. “I wonder if Farran’s already told him.”

The purple haired elf snapped her fingers. “Of course he has. They’ve been talking for the whole party. And since they decided not to fill us in until now…”

Catching on quick, Naida finished, “It’s only fair we go get the scoop from the man himself!”

Feeling a tap on his shoulder, Tidus turned to find the two elf girls smiling expectantly at him. He smiled back, subtly worrying if he was about to be asked to test an invention or try a potion. “What’s up, girls?”

“That’s what we came to ask you, Romeo.” Aira drew a heart in the air with her magic.

“Huh?”

“Fill me in, water elf to water elf. How did Farran say it to you?”

“Say what?”

The wind elf chuckled. “What she means is, did Farran come right out and tell you his feelings, or did he beat around the bush?”

“His feelings?”

There was a long pause, and every second that went by had both girls smiles shrinking more and more. Their eyes met, both of them screaming internally at the extreme mistake they’d just made. Although they didn’t have telepathy, it didn’t take more than a few blinks for them to agree that the best course of action was retreating. They were gone in a flash, and Tidus just stared dumbly at the spots they had been.

Farran was going to tell him his _feelings?_ What did that mean? They’d talked a lot already tonight, but never about feelings. Maybe a bit about the feeling of embarrassment, but he doubted that’s what they meant. But the only other thing he could think of made no sense. Confessing feelings for someone usually meant you liked them, and that couldn’t be what they meant. Right? Farran didn’t like him like _that_. They were both guys. That didn’t make any sense.

He really wished the green eyed boy would come back from changing already. Standing here by himself was giving him too much time to think. What if that _had_ been what they’d meant? What if Farran really did like him _like that._ Tidus had barely ever thought of things like love or relationships in general, and he’d definitely never thought about them with another guy. But he supposed it wasn’t like you _couldn’t_ have that sort of thing, if you really wanted to.

So what if it was true? Did that mean Farran wanted to do stuff like hold his hand and kiss him? The water elf smiled to himself, picturing a blushing Farran. The boy had a way of being adorable that was unmatched by even the cutest little dragon. Tidus felt very flattered by the thought that anyone liked him in that way. Picturing Farran as the one pining after him gave him a funny feeling in his stomach that he couldn’t explain.

“Sorry I took so long. Took a minute to find a clean tunic. I need to do laundry.” Farran’s voice shocked Tidus out of his thoughts and brought him back to reality. The earth elf smiled at him, but his hand was drawn to rub his arm, as though he was nervous about something. Tidus wouldn’t say he was an expert at reading body language, but that was a least a little bit suspicious, right? He decided to test the waters a bit.

“Hey, you wanna get out of here?”

“Huh?”

“You don’t think Emily would mind, do you? I wanna show you something cool.”

Farran began to sweat into his fresh shirt. The way the other boy’s eyes seemed to light up as he spoke made him nervous and excited at the same time.

“Alright, let’s go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. Comments and Kudos are always appreciated. Next chapter coming soon! :)


	4. Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls freak out while Tidus and Farran have a moment together.

“Thank you so much for the invitation. You can probably tell the Goblins have been a bit restless lately. This is the perfect way for them to play their music and have fun without being annoy- um… it’s just really nice for them.” Cronan changed his tone under the watchful eye of Rosalyn. As if to emphasize his point, a group of the little monsters stampeded by and nearly knocked Emily off her feet. She was too polite and having too much fun to care.

“We’re happy to have them. I’m sure there’s never a dull moment at the castle.”

Rosalyn beamed. “And that’s just the way we like it.” Her boyfriend’s expression implied otherwise.

Emily felt a rush of warm air and someone much bigger than a goblin smack into her from behind. Steadying herself, she turned to face the offending fire elf who was aggressively devouring a cupcake. Instinctively, she reached for a napkin from a nearby table and handed it to her messy friend. She heard friendly snickers from the elf couple behind her as Azari wiped her face, finishing the treat in a single gulp.

“Em, can I talk to you over here for a sec?”

Without an answer, the fire elf dragged her human friend away from the party and into the kitchen. More concerned than surprised at this point, Emily steadied herself _again_ and waited.

Azari took a deep breath. “I have something to tell you.”

“Ok.”

“You can’t get upset.”

Emily chuckled. “Did you break something?”

Azari frowned. “What? No! This is serious! Matters of the heart!”

_Matters of the heart?_ “Is this about Farran?”

“Kind of, yeah.”

Azari smiled guiltily and Emily took a moment to examine the situation. She’d been brought in here alone to discuss matters of the heart. And the ebony skinned elf seemed nervous.

“You know I’m a bad liar.”

That _was_ true. Did this mean Azari had her own crush issues? Did _she_ like Farran? Or maybe Tidus?

The fire elf came closer, reminding Emily of the heat that radiated off of her. Or at least, that’s what she thought it was. Maybe she was just heating up by herself. She couldn’t deny that Azari’s presence often made her feel like she had her own flame burning inside her. Especially when she complimented her or even just smiled the right way. Emily wasn’t exactly sure why she was feeling the heat now. Azari having a crush on someone didn’t have anything to do with her.

Unless…

The fire elf continued. “Do you remember our conversation earlier when Farran first told us?”

Emily thought back. She remembered Farran being embarrassed, and how she felt unqualified to answer his questions about elf sexuality. She remembered wondering about the elves being inherently bisexual. _She remembered Azari calling her cute._

A shiver ran down her spine. “Yeah, I remember.”

The human girl watched as her friend fidgeted, scared to admit whatever was next. She felt her heart begin to race. She couldn’t possibly be about to say what Emily was thinking she would say. Maybe, what she was _hoping_ she would say? Emily toyed with her hair, contemplating undoing the braid and letting it fall loose dramatically. Instead she just smiled in what she hoped was an encouraging way.

Azari made one last attempt to cushion the blow. “You promise you won’t get upset?”

Emily nodded and definitely didn’t flutter her eyelashes.

With a sigh, the fire elf finally spilled. “So I kind of broke the pinky promise we all made and accidentally told Aira and Naida about the real reason we threw the party and that Farran has a crush on someone and that someone is a guy and that guy is Tidus and then I ran away to hide my shame but I saw them run up to Tidus and I freaked out and didn’t know what to do so then I started eating because I was stressed and then I came to find you.”

The words “I feel the same way” had been on the tip of Emily’s tongue when Azari had started and by the time she’d finished she struggled to form any words at all. She took a moment to collect her thoughts while Azari caught her breath. Only about a half minute of silence passed while Emily let it all sink in and pretended she hadn’t even thought her friend had been about to say anything else.

“Em?”

The girl was already walking past her and out of the kitchen. “Come on. Let’s go find Naida and Aira. Maybe it’s not too late.”

It didn’t take long for the them to spot the pair as they awkwardly hovered near the drinks whispering to each other. Emily approached them with Azari trailing behind, her head cast slightly downward in guilt.

Aira saw them coming. “Emily, we have something to tell you.”

Emily’s stomach dropped. “You didn’t.”

Their silence was a clear answer. Azari covered her face. “This is all my fault! Why can’t I just keep my big mouth shut?”

Naida patted her on the back. “It’s _our_ fault. We’re the ones who told Tidus. That’s like, the worst thing you can ever do to a friend!”

The three elves looked ready to burst into tears. With a sigh, Emily joined their pity party. “We totally let Farran down. I just hope it doesn’t ruin their friendship.” She glanced around the room. “Where did they go? I don’t see either one of them.”

“Oh, I saw them leave together a few minutes ago.” The wind elf answered as if it was unimportant.

Naida was not pleased. “What?! You saw them leave together and didn’t tell me? We could have followed them!”

“You’re right! If we hurry we can probably still catch them! Are you coming too, Azari?”

The fire elf crossed her arms in contemplation, but Emily answered for her.

“None of you are going! We already messed this up for Farran by getting too involved. We need to let him do this alone.” She turned to peer out a window and observed the night sky. Plenty of stars. Romantic. “Besides, if you already told him, and they left together, I’d say that’s a good sign.”

\-------

The air was cool but pleasant as the two elves made their way down a path to the water. Farran hadn’t asked anymore questions about where they were going and just let himself enjoy the moment. Despite his lack of courage to say what he really wanted to say tonight, he was having a good time. It seemed like Tidus was enjoying himself too, which was all he could really ask for. The water elf was being awful mysterious about whatever he was about to show him, and his nerves had given way to excitement.

When they reached the edge of the water, Tidus stopped, admiring the reflection of the moon and the stars. “Beautiful, huh?”

Farran smiled. “Yeah. Beautiful.”

“One thing I love about water is how it can transform. It has no definite shape and can change colors with the light it reflects. It can be anything it wants to be.”

Farran noticed Tidus had a twinkle in his eye as he spoke. He admired his passion. The earth elf supposed he felt the same way about plants. There were so many different varieties and he wanted to study them all.

Of course, plants needed water to grow. Farran felt like he could use some water too.

“Alright, are you ready?” The blue haired elf cracked his knuckles.

“For what?”

Tidus chuckled. Farran always looked so innocent. “Just watch.”

With that, the water elf knelt down to touch the water. Farran watched as bright light flowed out with the ripples and spread across the whole river. Fluorescent fish popped in and out of the water and spouted little fountains in the air. Suddenly, small lily pads emerged from under the surface, drifting with purpose in a spiral pattern towards the edges. They glowed a radiant green as they danced across the river, a little trail of green light flowing behind them.

One glance at Farran’s expression caused Tidus to burst into laughter. The green clad boy had an expression of amazement and awe, his mouth stuck open and his eyebrows almost meeting his hairline. He had _so many_ questions, but was unable to make any sound at all. Tidus crossed his arms in satisfaction.

“So? What do you think?”

“I think… I think I need to sit down.”

The water elf snickered as his companion got ahold of himself.

“What _was_ that?”

“Something I’ve been working on for a while. It’s just a fancy water light show, really. I was saving it for the dragons graduation, so you better keep this to yourself and act surprised when you see it again.”

Farran was still in disbelief. “I don’t know any earth spells that even come close to something like _that._ ”

Tidus grinned. “There’s actually a little more to it than this.” As two lily pads drifted by, the water elf casually hopped onto them, one under each foot. Farran watched as he practically skated across the river, returning to the shore after doing a little spin.

The earth elf shook his head. “Show off.”

Tidus shrugged. “I can’t help it. It’s too cool to keep to myself. I had to share it with somebody.”

Farran didn’t have time to be flattered about that because Tidus still wasn’t finished. The water elf waved a hand and summoned two more lily pads to the shore.

“Hop on.”

“Oh, no thanks.”

“Come on, you’re an earth elf! A lily pad is a plant, more or less. It’s green!”

“I’m not the best in terms of balance.”

“You’ll be fine.” He extended a hand. “Trust me.”

Farran felt his heart melt and was lucky that his knees being unsteady was probably nothing new as he slowly reached to take his hand. Tidus was warm to the touch and as he took his first step, he quickly reached for his other hand. Farran settled onto the lily pads looking down nervously as they shifted in opposite directions under his feet. He panicked, but didn’t let go of the water elf’s hands as he tried to control them. Tidus smiled as he watched Farran slightly poke his tongue out while he concentrated on righting himself. The boy continued to find new ways to be adorable.

“I think I’ve got it now. Thank-WOAH!” He stumbled backwards, frantically rejoining hands with Tidus. “Sorry, I’m no good at this.”

“It’s alright.” Tidus let go with one hand and began to pull them away from the shore. “I’ll lead.”

They moved slowly at first, but as Farran got more comfortable they picked up speed, leaving little waves in their wake. Farran felt like he was soaring through the sky, but much smoother than his usual experience with chariots. He wasn’t afraid anymore but kept his hand softly clasped with the handsome water elf’s, who didn’t seem to mind. They finally came to a stop in the center of the river, surrounded by the glowing lily pads. Farran looked up at Tidus, still not taking his hand away. The adrenaline told him now was the perfect time.

“Tidus.” Their eyes met, shining in the moonlight.

“Yes?” Tidus ran a finger lightly across Farran’s palm. The earth elf felt chills of excitement.

“There’s something I have to tell you.” He was shaking, but only a little. He wasn’t afraid.

“I thought you might.” The dark-skinned elf couldn’t help but smirk. Farran’s stomach somersaulted.

“I think I can show you better than I can tell you.” Despite his lack of experience, the earth elf felt there was no way he could be reading this wrong. He leaned in, his lily pads moving closer. Tidus did the same.

Their lips met, and Farran could swear there was a swell of music as they kissed. He felt as though the water beneath him had been replaced with a cloud and they were floating through the sky, bathed in the cool light of the moon. He felt Tidus snake his arms around him and allowed himself to be consumed by his warmth. When the kiss ended, they both just stared at each other as if they’d just awoken from a dream.

Farran couldn’t believe he’d just done that. He felt his face grow red as he looked dumbly up at Tidus who appeared even more dashing when illuminated by the moonlight. The cocoa skinned elf’s knowing grin wasn’t helping.

“I figured I’d have to set a pretty good scene to get anything out of you.”

“What?” Farran cursed himself for being so obvious. “You knew?”

Tidus scratched the back of his head. “I may have had a little help. But you’re incredibly sweet. Like your nut bread.”

The earth elf chuckled, almost losing his balance again. “I think you’re ruining the moment.”

“You’re right.” He cleared his throat. “Farran, until tonight, I hadn’t thought about us being anything more than friends. But I think I like this a lot better.”

Farran would have swooned with hearts in his eyes if they hadn’t still been on the water.

“Me too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *insert generic excuse for lack of updates here* if anyone is even still reading this I apologize for how long this took. I've got one more chapter planned to wrap everything up with our gay elves/human. Stay tuned :)


	5. Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything wraps itself up. Riddled with fluff.

Walking back to the treehouse, Farran’s head was spinning with a calm, bouncy melody that filled him with warmth. He’d said goodnight to Tidus and watched the dreamy water elf disappear across the river. Neither of them had wanted to part so soon, but Tidus had responsibilities at the school. The earth elf supposed he hadn’t exactly been focusing on his research as much as he could have been. The party was nice, but there was work to be done! And besides, Tidus wasn’t going anywhere. He’d follow that boy to the deepest murkiest swamp in Elvendale if he had to.

He kept replaying their kiss over and over. Tidus had felt like a warm breeze wrapping around him and he’d tasted like salt water taffy. The smell of the ocean lingered on his skin and his palm still tingled as if remembering the water elf’s caress. In all his life, he’d never imagined something like this for himself. The girls sometimes talked about passion and romance, but Farran always felt he didn’t fit the mold. Only certain types of people got to experience feelings like that. He wasn’t anything special.

But he was understanding little by little that it wasn’t really like that anyway. It was much simpler than that. He liked Tidus. And Tidus liked him. Case closed! Of course, there were some details he was still a bit foggy on. Were they boyfriends now? Despite his lack of knowledge on social stuff, he doubted one kiss meant a whole lot. Maybe Emily could help him figure it out. The other girls loved to talk about love a lot, but they weren’t the most experienced either. Rosalyn and Cronan were in a relationship, but Farran supposed that wasn’t the best example to follow.

He shook away all the confusing thoughts and just went back to the kiss. Had Tidus really shown him all those beautiful things just to get him to confess? _That_ sure made him feel special. Tidus might have found his shyness endearing, but the earth elf was still embarrassed by it. It seemed like the hardest part was over. Should be pretty easy from here on out, right? He’s said what he needed to say. Now they can just keep on being really good friends. Who kiss sometimes. And are kind of more than friends. But maybe aren’t dating because Farran doesn’t even really know what a date is.

_Unless…was that a date?_

Finding himself in another batch of confusion, he once again swerved his thoughts back to Tidus, throwing in the mental image of him in a bathing suit for good measure. As he arrived back at the tree house, he was ready to just slip into bed and have sweet dreams.

The party had come to an end and the room was devoid of goblins. His three elf roommates plus Emily were silently cleaning up. It was unusual for there to be no conversation between them. A friendly squabble would have been better than nothing. Farran began to worry that something bad had happened in his absence.

“Uh, hey guys. Need some help?”

With a collective gasp, the four girls dropped what they were doing (literally in Azari’s case) and came rushing over to him. The elf boy was immensely confused as he heard multiple apologies and pleas for forgiveness. Even Emily, who could often keep her head straighter than the rest of them, seemed a bit distressed. He held up his hands and tried to calm them down, simultaneously playing out possibilities of what they were all apologizing for. _They broke something in his room. They spilled all his potions. They ruined his clothes. They used all of his favorite jelly_. None of them seemed to fit the bill. They’d never be _this_ apologetic about any of those things.

They hadn’t stopped talking, but he was pretty sure he’d heard them mention Tidus. _Oh boy._

“Ok, ok! Will one of you please just tell me what’s up?”

The girls settled and Aira elected herself to speak and stepped forward. “We all wanted to apologize for letting your secret out. Azari told Naida and I about your crush on Tidus, and we accidentally told him. We’re all very sorry and it would be pretty great of you to forgive us.” Her smile was entirely too big, the other two elf girls sporting similar ones. Emily shifted uncomfortably.

Farran was stricken to silence. _They told him???_ The cogs in his brain began to turn as the pieces fell into place. He felt his face go red, wondering how stupid he must have looked if Tidus knew the whole time what he’d been working up the courage to say. At the same time, it made his efforts to coax it out of him sweeter somehow. Like it was something he really wanted too. _Maybe that meant both of them had been a little silly about the whole thing._ Considering how that could have gone badly, he supposed he had a right to be upset with the girls, but he was too far into the clouds to be angry.

“It’s ok. I forgive you guys. So, do you need my help?”

Emily smiled brightly at him. “No, I think we’ve got it-“

“Wait! What happened out there? You guys were gone for a long time! Did you tell him?” Naida was on the edge of her seat.

Aira followed suit. “If you chickened out, we’ll just have to throw another party!”

Azari scoffed. “Nah, he totally told him. I bet everything worked out, right?”

He smiled. “You could say that.”

While the trio of elf girls, as politely and friendly as they could, began interrogating him for details, Emily dragged them away to finish cleaning up. “We’ve meddled enough you guys. Just be glad he’s still speaking to us and let’s get back to work.”

Heading towards his room, Farran glanced back with a smirk to Emily. She’d really had his back through this entire experience. He was grateful for her friendship, and he knew he wasn’t the only one. Since she started coming around, life had gotten better for all of them. She smiled back, and he realized he almost forgot something.

“Tidus invited us all to the dragon school tomorrow! Bring your swim suits!”

\-------

After the party was all taken care of, Emily had decided to return home. Throwing a party without her was one thing, but Sophie would likely be genuinely upset if Emily didn’t bring her along to the dragon school. The ginger haired girl had collapsed into bed and slept in longer than she would have liked to. She’d been in the middle of looking for her bathing suit when her delightful sister came stampeding up the stairs.

“Hey, Soph. How was the slee-“

“You went to Elvendale without me?!”

Emily sighed. Their parents didn’t know all the specifics, but they understood and accepted Emily’s responsibilities to the other world (even though most of the time she just went to hang out). Obviously, they had noticed her absence yesterday and broke the news to Sophie. _Thanks a lot, guys._

“Yes, I did. But don’t worry, I’m about to go back and you can come if you aren’t too tired.”

After a moment of contemplation, Sophie decided she was content with that response and plopped down onto Emily’s bed. The older sister shook her head and returned to her dresser. “Do you know where my bathing suit is?”

Sophie jumped up again. “Are we all going swimming?!”

“I think so. Tidus invited us all to the dragon school.”

Instead of a response, Emily heard her sister rushing off down the hall, likely to look for her own bathing suit. She rolled her eyes but still smiled as she continued to rummage through her drawers. She managed to find two old swim suits that no longer fit and a Halloween costume from 3rd grade before she finally located the suit she was looking for. As she refolded the stuff she’d taken out, something fell out of the pile and clunked to the floor. Surprised, she slowly bent down to examine the object. She was normally pretty organized and assumed Sophie must have been the culprit.

However, she recognized it instantly. A deep red and orange stone. _A firestone._

It was a gift she’d gotten from Azari on one of her earliest trips to Elvendale. The memory brought a stupid grin to her face. The rock was actually just a chunk of an old Elvendale volcano she’d gone with the fire elf to see. Emily had made a joke about wanting a souvenir from the trip, and Azari had snapped off the little rock and gave it to her. Emily laughed to herself quietly, placing the rock on her nightstand. The heat inside her was back, and she studied herself in the mirror.

_I shouldn’t preach self confidence to others if I’m not going to have it myself._

“Hurry up, Emily! Did you find it yet?” Sophie poked her head in looking as excited as ever.

With a small sigh and a smile, Emily grabbed her suit and followed her sister out the door.

\-------

As they trekked through the woods towards her normal portal spot, it occurred to Emily she should probably say something to Sophie about the current situation. It was kind of awkward to have to tell her younger sister this stuff, but she wasn’t sure how Sophie would react if Farran and Tidus kissed in front of her. Even more to the point, she wasn’t sure how the _elves_ would react if Sophie made them feel weird about it.

“So, some stuff has changed since you’ve been gone.”

The younger sister looked confused. “In one day?”

Emily laughed. It did sound kind of crazy, but that was Elvendale. “Pretty much, yeah.”

Sophie shrugged. “What’s new?”

“Well, you know how boys get married to girls and girls get married to boys?”

“Uh, yeah. I’m not five!”

“I know, sorry.” Not off to a great start. “So that’s how it is for most people. But some people aren’t like that. Some girls like other girls, and some boys like other boys.”

Admittedly, Sophie wasn’t a stranger to this concept either. Some mean names were thrown around at school that she was pretty sure had something to do with that. “Yeah, I know.”

“Oh, you do?” A massive weight dropped from her shoulders. It was bad enough having to explain it to elves. “That’s the only thing that’s changed, really. Farran and Tidus are…a little closer now.”

Sophie turned this news over in her head for a second or two, concluding it didn’t have any effect on if she’d be allowed to go to the dragon school or not. “Sounds good to me.”

Opening the portal, Emily shook her head at her sister’s indifference. Once again, she’d caused herself to worry for no reason.

\-------

The sun was high in the sky and the beach was full of life. All the elves had been ecstatic to see the younger human and Naida was currently lifting the girl into the air with a fountain of water. Ever the daredevil, Sophie leapt off the fountain and dove back into the water, inspiring cheers from all around. Emily was startled by a loud horn and looked to see Aira approaching with one of her newest inventions. It looked like a small little boat with a raft tied on behind it. Vaguely recalling describing the concept of tubing not too long ago, Emily realized that Aira had been taking notes.

“Introducing the Fantastic Water Driver and Raft Dragger by Aira!”

Sophie would have been more concerned about her sisters’ lack of a life jacket if there weren’t multiple people with the ability control water present. She decided to let go of her nagging for one day and shouted a simple _Be careful_ which was more or less ignored. Laying back on her towel, she heard someone plot down beside her.

“Whatchya doing, Em?”

Another stupid smile forced itself onto her face. “Just relaxing.”

That could have been the end of the conversation. Emily was content to relax and bask in the light of the sun and the warmth that radiated from her fiery friend. She didn’t have to rush with her feelings. Azari was a great friend and would still be there whenever she was ready.

“So are we going to be like Farran and Tidus too?”

Shaken as if she’d been struck by lightning, Emily shot up abruptly and then was quickly embarrassed by her knee jerk reaction. “Uh, what do you mean?”

Azari stretched and got more comfortable on the towel. Emily tried not to stare at her smooth dark skin. “You know, like being more than friends. I think we should do that.”

Feeling a chuckle tickling the back of her throat, Emily felt her nerves fade away. Azari was just being her honest self. Maybe if more people just said how they were really feeling, there wouldn’t be so much drama in normal relationships. Not that Emily had experienced that, but she did have friends at school who were constantly complaining about their love life. _No thanks._

Returning to her spot on the towel, Emily tried to be as confident as her friend seemed. “I think we should do that too.”

Instead of a verbal response, Emily felt the fire elf scooch closer. It felt like laying next to a fireplace, and Emily couldn’t help but think she’d always preferred things a little hot.

\-------

A little farther down the beach, away from the speeding death machine that was Aira’s new invention, Farran was floating on a leaf shaped raft. He wasn’t the best at swimming, but Tidus had convinced him to come out where the water was a little deeper. The earth elf was regretting this decision wholeheartedly as Tidus had disappeared under the water and left him alone. He knew what the other boy was doing.

“You better not flip me, Tidus! I’m serious!” His voice wavered, expressing more fear than anything.

Suddenly, the water elf came shooting out of the water, diving upwards in an arc over top of the little green raft and back in with a splash. Farran had been sufficiently soaked and somehow both impressed and jealous at the same time. As Tidus resurfaced, he swam towards the raft and leaned his arms on it, tipping it ever so slightly. Farran found his jealousy increased as the water seemed to sparkle on the blue haired boy’s dark skin. He was certain for his part that he just looked wet and sad.

“I’m going to get you in the water either way.”

“Please no.”

“Please yes! You’re not going to drown.”

Farran used his foot to splash the other boy. “You told me there was a vicious kraken!”

“There is! Here he comes now!”

Farran couldn’t react fast enough. Tidus swiftly dove back under water and tossed his raft into the air, likely with some magical help. Although the water felt like a refreshing escape from the hot sun, Farran was still _not_ happy about being forced in. He surfaced with a scowl and searched for his raft. Spotting it on the shore, he realized Tidus had stranded him. He would have been more upset if the water elf floating on his back alongside him wasn’t so…dreamy. Farran looked away, trying to look angry.

“Are you mad?” Tidus felt little prickles of guilt.

“A little.”

He swam around Farran in a circle, stopping once they were face to face.

“You look like you can swim just fine.”

It did feel easier than he thought. Farran shrugged. “I’ve been watching how you do it for a while.”

Tidus laughed. “You’ve been checking me out for a while?”

That earned him another splash. Seeing Farran looking genuinely embarrassed was cute, but it only increased his guilt. He decided to made a confession of his own. “I’ve always thought you were cute too, you know.”

The earth elf didn’t seem thrilled. “Like in a funny, shy, clumsy kind of way?”

_Yikes._ Maybe _cute_ wasn’t a good word. “Well, sort of. You’re probably the sweetest out of everyone.” He found himself struggling with what to say next. He hadn’t really thought of himself as super attractive, but Farran made him feel that way. He wanted to return the favor. “But not just that. You’re handsome too.” Talking like this was something new for him, so he was a little uncomfortable. But there was more he needed to say. “I also think it’s really cool how diligent you are with your research and potions and stuff. You really don’t _have_ to do all of that, but you keep at it anyway. And I also like how you’re always there for your friends. I’ve seen the girls drag you into countless problems, and you push through with a smile. You’re great, Farran Leafshade. And I really like you.”

Tidus scratched the back of his head, clearly feeling awkward about what he’d just said. But his smile told the earth elf he meant every word. Farran on the other hand was pretty sure he was about to sink to the bottom of the sea and never be seen again.

Instead, they shared their second kiss, and the warmth of their bodies against each other told him that everything was as it should be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's all folks! I hope you enjoyed this story and you best believe if this show gets another season that I'll be there waiting :)


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